Tag Archives: bloatware

Lenovo will pay a $3.5 million fine for preinstalling adware on certain laptops

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Lenovo came under fire a few years ago for pre-installing adware called VisualDiscovery (developed by Superfish) onto new machines. Now that the legal dust has settled, the laptop maker has agreed to pay $3.5 million in fines to a 32-state coalition...

Your big-name PC may have a security flaw in its update software

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Those problems with security holes in big PC makers' software bundles? They might not be over yet. Duo Security says it found vulnerabilities in the update software for Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP and Lenovo. Some vendors were more secure than others in Duo...

Verizon’s Galaxy S7 can install apps on its own, but don’t panic

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Verizon is notorious in some circles for loading its smartphones with bloatware, but its recent moves have some users more anxious than usual... if not necessarily for the best reasons. A recent update to the carrier's Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge variants...

Dell is the latest PC maker with a gaping security flaw, but it will fix it

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Lenovo and Samsung might not be the only big Windows PC makers pre-installing software that compromises your security. Computer buyers have discovered that Dell is shipping at least some PCs (such as the new XPS 15) with a self-signed security certif...

South Korea Tries to Reduce Bloatware…YEA!

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Bloatware really sucks. You know what I am talking about. So much of the software that is pre-installed on some smartphones and gadgets right out of the box is just garbage. In South Korea, bloatware has become a huge issue. For instance, the Galaxy S4 from Samsung sold on the SK Telecom network comes out of the box with 80 apps installed.

bloatwaremagnify

That is a huge number of apps with 25 of them coming from the carrier itself, 39 from Samsung, and 16 from Google. To combat this increasing bloatware, South Korea is set to put some guidelines into effect that will require bloatware to be deletable by the end user.

Some of the software will be allowed to stay if it has to do with the app store or functionality of the device. That means software for things like Wi-Fi and NFC tech don’t have to be removable, but if Angry Birds comes pre-installed, you should be able to easily remove it.

I hope that this sort of rule goes into effect around the world. It sucks to have half your storage space already eaten up when you pull your new smartphone out of the box.

[via ZDNet]

Samsung Galaxy S 4’s storage to be investigated by BBC Watchdog

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We've seen Microsoft's Surface RT face similar accusations, but this time it's the turn of Samsung's Galaxy S 4 and how much space you'll actually get from that advertised 16GB of storage. The BBC's consumer rights show, Watchdog, will be focusing on the smartphone in next week's episode, and the fact that almost half of the phone's memory is already occupied by Samsung's own software and apps. According to UK retailer Clove, there's just 9.5GB of storage left for customers to fill. It's not the only Android phone with storage space less than advertised -- visit our More Coverage link to see how the Droid RAZR Maxx's 16GB of storage magically transforms into 8GB of usable space. While the smartphone maker argues that the phone does offer an expansion option in the form of a microSD card slot (up to 64GB, no less), some apps still seem to prefer to reside on built-in storage over anything removable -- Amazon's Cloud Player comes to mind.

Host Anne Robinson hints at the end of this week's episode: "It [Samsung] claims that its brand new Galaxy phone has an extra-large memory, but what did it forget to mention?" Although we might have spoiled that question for you already, check the teaser after the break. Brits can tune in for the show at 8PM GMT next Wednesday.

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Via: SlashGear

Source: Videolan (YouTube), Gavin's Gadgets

Verizon to preload PlayPhone-backed Games Portal on Android devices

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Verizon to preload PlayPhonebacked Games Portal on Android devices

Carriers often want to provide unique device software as a lure for their services -- like it or not -- and gaming is undeniably one of the more attractive hooks. It makes sense, then, that Verizon now says it will use PlayPhone's SDK as the framework for a new hub, Games Portal, on its Android devices. The effort will give any optimized titles direct carrier billing and a social component, as well as theoretically better exposure than what they'd get on a very crowded Google Play. Verizon will preload the portal on new devices from this spring onwards, in addition to updating some existing hardware. The code should be comparatively simple to implement, but we'd add that there's no guarantee of success: Verizon's last experiment with reviving the carrier-controlled app gateway didn't quite pan out.

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Via: Phone Scoop

Source: PlayPhone

Sprint allows its prepaid carrier partners to de-brand Android phones, rid devices of bloatware

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Sprint allows its prepaid carrier partners to debrand Android phones, rid devices of bloatware

In a move that could only be viewed as a step in the right direction, Sprint has just made a major move in the battle against bloatware. It's newly-unveiled Custom Branded Device Program is being introduced just as prepaid carriers are beginning to see something of a resurgence. In a nutshell, the initiative enables its MVNO partners (carriers like Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile) to customize white-label Android phones. In case you needed to hear it another way, it'll give those partners the ability to "completely de-brand devices from Sprint." Of course, this opens the door for said partners to litter these phones with their own software, but it also provides an option to see phones in a manner that Americans rarely see unless they opt for pricier global (and unlocked) models.

Sprint is hoping that the program will allow its MVNO partners -- carriers who sell phones under their own brand but actually rely on Sprint's network for service -- to "have greater, and potentially quicker, access to a large selection of completely de-branded marquee Android handsets out of Sprint and Boost Mobile device inventory with volume pricing included." Presently, Sprint has three devices available for this program -- LG Optimus G, LG Mach and Sprint Flash -- but additional devices are expected to be added by the month's end. Perhaps most interestingly, we reported back in July of 2011 that Sprint was making a "conscious decision to scale back bloatware on smartphones." Here's hoping that decision is soon realized.

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Source: Sprint

Verizon adding suite of Amazon apps to all new Android devices

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Verizon adding suite of Amazon apps to all new Android devices

Most US carriers have been pulling back on the sheer number of pre-installed apps thrown onto the latest Android devices, but Verizon appears to be heading in the opposite direction. An announcement found within the safe confines of Big Red's internal system indicates that the Samsung Galaxy Stellar wasn't the only product in the lineup to get officially introduced to a suite of Amazon apps -- every single Android device gracing Verizon's shelves will also get the same treatment. The suite includes apps for the Kindle, Shopping, MP3, IMDb, Audible and Zappos. There was no word on whether the bloatware can be disabled or uninstalled, but since the policy goes into effect today, we should find out pretty soon. We highly doubt this will be a focal point at Amazon's press event, but we won't skirt over the possibility of it getting some time on Jeff Bezos' teleprompters.

As a sidenote, Verizon mentions here that this policy excludes Google experience devices and tablets, which could be cause for speculation that new Nexus devices (including tablets) are en route to the LTE carrier. This wording is pretty open, however, and it may simply be Verizon's way of covering themselves in case such a device comes out in the future.

[Thanks, Anonymous!]

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Verizon adding suite of Amazon apps to all new Android devices originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Sep 2012 00:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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